Study Shows THC Can Alter Genetic Makeup Of Sperm

Researchers have
made a profound discovery in the field of cannabis science: even sperm can get
high. A new study from Duke University indicates that heavy marijuana use in
men can change the genetic makeup of their sperm, and might even alter genes
which are passed on to their children.

The study,
published in journal Epigenetics and reported in Sky News, required researchers to get 24 human
men and a bunch of rats high on THC. Researchers then studied the subject’s
sperm.

That means that
these researchers spent their days getting rodents high and then studying their
sperm, which is among the more interesting jobs I’ve heard of lately. (The Sky
News article does not detail exactly how
researchers went about extracting the sperm from rats.)

What they found
was that “THC targets genes in two major cellular pathways.” It’s still unclear
how, if at all, alterations to sperm genes from THC could affect the offspring
of these stoner mice and men.

“We don’t
yet know what that means, but the fact that more and more young males of
child-bearing age have legal access to cannabis is something we should be
thinking about,” said Professor Scott Kollins.

Dr. Susan Murphy,
another researcher on the study, added that in her opinion, “In the
absence of a larger, definitive study, the best advice would be to assume these
changes are going to be there… We don’t know whether they are going to be
permanent.”

“I would say, as
a precaution, stop using cannabis for at least six months before trying to
conceive.”

As these
researchers, we still don’t know what all this pot use could do to the next
generation. Maybe it could make them dumb as rocks. Maybe it could make them
superpowered Incredible Hulks. Probably neither of those, but we’re just
spitballing.

Previous studies
have shown that many other factors can alter sperm including exposure to
tobacco smoke, flame retardants, pesticides, and obesity.